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I've always been a Mustang guy. My first car was a early 65 Convertible with a straight 6, I then moved up to a 65 2+2 with a 289 backed by a four speed and the list goes on. My last Mustang was a 1986 Fox body GT convertible. I had to part it because we were having twins and no matter how ingenious you are you cannot fit three car seats in the back of a Mustang. So since 2007 that has been sitting and taunting me. At this point it requires far more to become road worthy then I can manage at this time (Bad knees and no garage). Well recently my older son expressed an interest in cars and wanted to go in on one when he got out of school. Well he is now out of school and this 2005 practically fell into our hands. So together we went in on it. Its by far no where near as nice looking as the cars seen on this forum but its ours and I feel it has potential. She will be going to the garage tomorrow for an oil and fuel filter change. I will have them give it a once over while its on the lift so i we have an idea of what we need to do.
Its a 2005 Coupe, V6, Black with a Parchment interior
We didn't see the original horse and grill hiding behind the current one. haha
Aftermarket halo lights. Does anyone know these can be fixed if some of the lights are inop?
18 inch American Muscle Wheels
Quarter window covers
Sequential tail lights
The worst thing so far is this quarter, and the rust on the wheel well and at the rocker just forward of the rear wheel
It needs some TLC but its mine, it runs great for a car with 154 thousand miles. And its a car my son and I can build together. That in and of itself is priceless
Thanks for taking the time to look
Thank you very much for introducing yourself and for sharing your story... Welcome aboard and also thank you for posting pics of your 2005 V6 Coupe in Ebony, as she looks absolutely stunning!
From the moment I first sat in this car I disliked the four gauge cluster. It was so simplistic looking. Then come to find out the only functioning gauge was the Temp gauge meant I could justify an upgrade. ! HAZA! I Searched around the interwebs but couldn't find any. I looked at eBay and it was nothing but repair services. To be honest I didn't want to repair mine I wanted BETTER! Anyway since I couldn't find a replacement I needed to get the current unit fixed so I ordered the Steppers, watched a lot of videos and was ready to go.
Then our very own Kevin intervened. He found a 6 gauge cluster from an 06 on ebay that was within 10.000 miles of mine. Next was to find the control buttons for the console. Another swing and a miss and once again Kevin saved the day. He found a set of buttons sitting on a self in an Alabama Ford dealership. After a few calls the part was shipped. Next I wanted to get a new face-plate for it. The all black cluster is a drag. So for that I turned to American Muscle
Now we wait....
Here is what we are starting with. Note this baby is doing over 160 sitting in my driveway. This is one bad *** v6. HAHA
Here is the new(er) cluster from ebay
The boy is busy with work and such so he was ok with me starting this without him. That said this would have been a great project for him.
First we need to tear down the new cluster and get the new face plate on.
First step, remove the lens cover
Using a fork i carefully popped off all the dials
Next I removed the black face plate. This came off a lot easier then I expected or had seen in some videos
Not sure these olde face plates are worth anything so off to the trash. Next I cleaned the cluster with some rubbing alcohol to get rid of any glue residue
The new face plate. It looks a bit cartoonish by itself. I was even second guessing my decision to get this for a moment or two
Now I might get some flack on this next thing but i'm old and crotchety and don't care what people think. This is a cluster from a V8 and as such the red line is higher then it would be for a V6. So using some pinstripe tape I had I marked the cluster as a reminder to future drivers.
All the dials are back in place and ready to be installed into the car
Thanks for taking the time to check out my on going project.
From the moment I first sat in this car I disliked the four gauge cluster. It was so simplistic looking. Then come to find out the only functioning gauge was the Temp gauge meant I could justify an upgrade. ! HAZA! I Searched around the interwebs but couldn't find any. I looked at eBay and it was nothing but repair services. To be honest I didn't want to repair mine I wanted BETTER! Anyway since I couldn't find a replacement I needed to get the current unit fixed so I ordered the Steppers, watched a lot of videos and was ready to go.
Then our very own Kevin intervened. He found a 6 gauge cluster from an 06 on ebay that was within 10.000 miles of mine. Next was to find the control buttons for the console. Another swing and a miss and once again Kevin saved the day. He found a set of buttons sitting on a self in an Alabama Ford dealership. After a few calls the part was shipped. Next I wanted to get a new face-plate for it. The all black cluster is a drag. So for that I turned to American Muscle
Now I might get some flack on this next thing but i'm old and crotchety and don't care what people think. This is a cluster from a V8 and as such the red line is higher then it would be for a V6. So using some pinstripe tape I had I marked the cluster as a reminder to future drivers.
All the dials are back in place and ready to be installed into the car
Thanks for taking the time to check out my on going project.
Till next time... B - Strong
Somebody Been Reading My Cluster Threads! I Think the Pinstripe Tape is a Cool Idea and it Should Hold Up To Interior Heat Being Pinstripe Tape! Love The Look Of the New Face. May Have To Borrow Some of This Do it Yourself Cluster Install Mods For Said Threads! Thank You!
Time to install this cluster. Here is the ugliness that is my cockpit. No tach, No fuel, and one wacked out speed-odometer
We start by dropping the steering wheel down to its lowest point. Then grasping the cluster cover at the 9 and 3 o'clock position you pull forward and it pops right out. The cluster is now fully exposed
Now take out the 4 7mm bolts identified in the picture below
I need t be careful because the mic for my Bluetooth phone is right there in the middle of everything. The last thing I need is to pinch my wire
Cars have come a long way since the last time I did something like this. Now the only thing connecting the cluster is ONE (1) cable. The clip can be a bit tricky but once you flip it over to the right it will come right out
To this point it was a lot easier then I thought. At this point i'm only about 10 to 15 minutes into this project
Now we reverse the process, Install the cable and reinstall the 4 bolts.
Before I finish everything off I want to test and make sure all the needles are in the right position. For this all you have to do is turn on the car. The gauges will load and settle back into position. Now validate that the needles are in the right position. Everything we fine for me except the speedo. It was resting at about 5MPH. So I pulled out the cluster, pulled the speedo needle and re-positioned it. I had to do this twice.
Once everything is secure I re-installed the cluster bezel. This looks SO much better in my opinion
Now we have some troubleshooting to do. There are some lights lit on the new cluster.
First is the ABS Warning Light -
The Parking Brake Light
The Traction control Light.
Now this is the one I think that is actually a problem. This light was lit on my old dash as well.
Well I Don't Believe your Car Has ABS or Traction Control . The Air Bag Light Can Be A Sensor or Resistors are Missing. Need To Be Able to Pull a Body Code.
I Revived this Old For Sale Topic Out of The Graveyard For Reference To the Resistors We talked About on the Phone! The Brake Upgrade Info Maybe Useful as well!
Looking good! Glad you were able to find a new cluster. Hope you will be able to get it working properly.
Something to keep in mind...If you are ever in need of car parts check this website. car-part.com it saved me a whole bunch of times and the prices are a lot better than ebay or dare I say the dealership..
The airbag could be a few things. Just this past month it was illuminated on my dash as well but thats because I changed my steering wheel and clock spring. There is a set of instructions that you need to follow to set the clock spring properly. Maybe it might help you with the issue.
Also check the wires under the seats. The yellow connector and the wires to the seat buckle. I have had it once where the wire ripped from the seat belt buckle and the air bag light turned on. Couldnt figure out why until I looked under the drivers seat. Worth a shot.
Oh and I just wanted to share my custom cluster since you put in a new one. Yours does look nice.
Looking good! Glad you were able to find a new cluster. Hope you will be able to get it working properly.
Something to keep in mind...If you are ever in need of car parts check this website. car-part.com it saved me a whole bunch of times and the prices are a lot better than ebay or dare I say the dealership..
The airbag could be a few things. Just this past month it was illuminated on my dash as well but thats because I changed my steering wheel and clock spring. There is a set of instructions that you need to follow to set the clock spring properly. Maybe it might help you with the issue.
Also check the wires under the seats. The yellow connector and the wires to the seat buckle. I have had it once where the wire ripped from the seat belt buckle and the air bag light turned on. Couldnt figure out why until I looked under the drivers seat. Worth a shot.
Oh and I just wanted to share my custom cluster since you put in a new one. Yours does look nice.
Thanks VGM, I gave the car to my son after I got the cluster replaced to let him enjoy some wheel time. I will start troubleshooting this once I get it back
Hey guys, its been awhile since I asst posted. Its gotten colder here in New Jersey so we put a hold on most of the projects we had planned. I hope you all had a great holiday and New Year.
The one thing I have been trying to do is find a body shop to fix the rust on my drivers side rear quarter and some other minor work. Its a strange phenomenon. No one wants to do the work. Body shop after body shop after body shop. We talk about what I want done, they take pictures, they take the VIN data and then they don't call me back. I call them, leave a message and nothing... Why do I feel like I am forcing people to take my money. Then something happened. I went to a shop today and the guy was pleased to see me and talk. Then as soon as he saw the car he shut down but at least he told me why. No one in our area wants to do rust work. They are want to do the quick collision work and prefer getting paid by the insurance company's. How frustrating this has become.
One of the few shops that did get back to me had an astronomical price quote and he said it was mostly because the rear quarters on the 05-09 cars are no longer in production and are quite expensive if you can find them. Another place I went to (where m cousin works) had given me a quote but I didn't want to go on the first without more information, but I went back to them today, we talked it out and the car will go to him on the 15th of January.
Its a load off my shoulders to have a date to get the work done. But what a pain in the "Back side". But its not just body shops. I've been wanting some landscape work done as well and I'm facing the same problem. people come out, spent the time talking and then I never hear from them again.
Oh I forgot, for Christmas my son got me a set of Eleanor quarter window scoops... So psyched. So they will be going with the car to get painted and installed. Hopefully the current quarter window louvers will come off ok so that I can flip them to someone that needs them and cover part of the cost of things
Thanks For the Update I Had Been Wondering Where You Been!
Funny What You Say About the Body Shops. During My Search for Info in How To Best get My Multiple Fire Car Damage Estimated I Got Ahold of a Retired Adjuster I Used to Deal With. He Said the Same Thing as How All Bodyshops Wanted to Do Was The Insurance Collision Work and Nobody Wanted To Paint Old Cars Etc. Funny in My Day They Hated Insurance Work Cause They Always Tried to Go Cheap! I Have One Retired Bodyshop Owner Who Still Dabbles in the Business His Son Now Runs Who Could Likely Estimate Values For Me. Parts are Not The Issue as That is My Forte But Paint Labor & Materials are Not in My Skill Set.
Sometimes Doors are Closed Because They are Not The Right thing For You So in The End You Are Likely Where You Need To Be! We Look Forward To Your Updates!
Thanks For the Update I Had Been Wondering Where You Been!
Funny What You Say About the Body Shops. During My Search for Info in How To Best get My Multiple Fire Car Damage Estimated I Got Ahold of a Retired Adjuster I Used to Deal With. He Said the Same Thing as How All Bodyshops Wanted to Do Was The Insurance Collision Work and Nobody Wanted To Paint Old Cars Etc. Funny in My Day They Hated Insurance Work Cause They Always Tried to Go Cheap! I Have One Retired Bodyshop Owner Who Still Dabbles in the Business His Son Now Runs Who Could Likely Estimate Values For Me. Parts are Not The Issue as That is My Forte But Paint Labor & Materials are Not in My Skill Set.
Sometimes Doors are Closed Because They are Not The Right thing For You So in The End You Are Likely Where You Need To Be! We Look Forward To Your Updates!
KC
Dude, I reached out to you at Thanksgiving but you never responded. I figured you were done with me and all my questions.. HAHA Just kidding. I mean I did reach out to you but I took your non-responsiveness as you were busy.
Alright, so now that I have had some wheel time in the car I'm feeling pretty good about its state. I have only two items that aren't working at this point, The rest of the stuff is minor crap and updating work.
Issue 1 is the Windshield Wipers.- They are totally dead at this point. The fuses are good so unless I'm missing something its the motor or the switch. I have yet to do any real troubleshooting or research at this time.
Issue 2 is the Defroster is not working. I have not had time to look for and check the fuse yet. Not sure is there is anything else to look at for this issue.
Both of these are things I will tackle in the spring time
Some other things I have questions about that I was hoping people might be able to point me in the right direction.
First is I'm missing one of the levers that move the front seats forward for people to get in the back. The only replacements I can find are black and my interior is tan. Granted this is a silly thing to focus on with all the other things but it bugs me and I need to find a replacement. The other thing I'm looking for (But admit not ready to tackle) is replacing the front seat upholstery. I can't find replacements for a Tan interior. Sure the black interiors are more popular but I don't feel like switching it over. I would prefer to keep it the original color.
10/26/23, 03:27 PM
I Think the Pinstripe Tape is a Cool Idea and it Should Hold Up To Interior Heat Being Pinstripe Tape! 
